WELLINGTON RIDING CSI2*/1*/YH1*
Monday 23 May 2022
.jpg "WELLINGTON RIDING CSI2*/1*/YH1*")
Adrian Speight hit top form to take a victory double in the Gold Tour classes with Judith Whitham’s Millfield Baloney at Wellington Riding’s four-day 2* International in Hampshire, including winning the top-billed Grand Prix.
Adrian had fired a warning shot across the bows in Saturday’s Gold 1.40m two-phase, outpacing 75 rivals to secure the win by 1.60 seconds over Alicia Page’s Diacento in second. It proved to be a good omen.
Sixty-two competitors faced a testing 13-fence, 16-jumping effort 1.45m track designed by Raf Suarez and assisted by Ben Townley with just eight finding all the right answers to qualify for the jump-off. Adrian found the shortest route with the Balou Du Rouet x Kanudos 16-year-old to win with 0.92 seconds in hand over Louise Saywell in second on the 9-year-old Kannan stallion Kingsborough Kasper. Lance Whitehouse supplied the only other treble clear for third on Bazento.
“He [Baloney] felt good at Chepstow International and was third in the grand prix, this week he felt even better, he jumped fantastic and hopefully I’ll have a good run on him. He can gallop in a speed or two-phase and still pull out and jump the grand prix but he’s 16 now and needs a bit of a leg stretch. Twenty minutes work in the morning sets him up and he’ll come out switched on,” said Adrian, who has already planned this season.
“We are prioritising the International shows in this country while we have them without travelling abroad and next on the list is the good, unique shows like Great Yorkshire, Royal Highland and those with decent grands prix, the International Stairway and county circuit.”
Laura Mantel was another to score a winning double with Liz Howe’s home-bred Glory B V on the Gold Tour. The pair topped day one’s 69-strong 2* 1.35m two-phase with 0.88 seconds to spare over second-placed Sally Goding, fresh from her national 1.40m win at Windsor with Spring Willow.
They were even quicker on day two. A mammoth entry of one hundred and three competitors came forward in day two’s 1.40m speed, forcing the entries to be split into two sections. Laura and the 15-year-old Caretino Glory x Animo mare were nonetheless the quickest of all one hundred and three by 0.57 seconds, topping the first section of 52 competitors with almost five seconds in hand.
“She’s back on song, she can still be a madam but it is lovely to have her back,” said Laura, who got the ride back in August last year after a two-year hiatus. “I wad early to go in both classes, we just did what we could do and then had to wait.”
Gemma Tattersall came to the fore in the second 1.40m section, outpacing her fifty rivals on the nine-year-old MGH Candy Girl (Sligo Candy Boy x Cruising) with 4.88 seconds to spare over young rider Iwan Carpenter and Merllyn’s Chocca Nova.
Gemma doubled up with the 6-year-old Final on Cinsey Blue PS. Twenty-seven combinations contended the 1.25m track with seven providing first round clears to go forward into the jump-off, Gemma and the Cinsey x Chacco-Blue mare easing ahead to win by 0.34 seconds.
Lucy Townley commanded victory in the 2* Silver Tour Final with the sole double clear on An Breeding’s Billy Olga. Forty-six initially tackled this two-round 1.35m class with twelve qualifying for the jump-off, the four clears joined by two on time faults only and a further six carrying four faults each. A smooth, calm clear second time out paid dividends as Lucy and the Billy Congo x Cassini I eight-year-old mare Billy Olga claimed the top spot.
Morgan Kent landed the 7-year-old Final with Kaatje AD in and eight-strong decider, yielded from 27 starters. Morgan and the Emir R x Papillon Rouge mare were the only ones to break the 40 sec barrier and relegated early leader Ronnie Jones on Key West to second by 1.11 seconds.
Arianna Kuligowski returned triumphant in the 1* Big Tour Final with Horsepower Motor Centre’s Ivascalle, a consistent winner in Vilamoura, Portugal, at the end of 2021 and a double winner at Chepstow just last week. Fourteen of the original thirty-six starters provided first round clears to return for the jump-off with Arianna and the nine-year-old Baltic VDL x Lincoln mare making short work of the shortened course to win with 3.32 seconds in hand.
Vicky Lovegrove lifted the 1* Small Tour Final with Ruth Dowie’s Babel. Thirty-one competitors started over this two-round class with the five initial clears joined by two riders on one time fault each and the fastest of the round one four-faulters to make a jump-off of eight. Just two remained fault free, Vicky and the 11-year-old Diamant De Semilly x Dollar Du Murier mare Babel claiming a winning advantage of 3.66 seconds over Chloe Lemieux in second on Q Seven.
Charlotte Uden conjured up a winning double in the 1* Small Tour classes on Rathbride Millie, the 12-year-old Cruisings Micky Finn daughter heading the initial 32-strong 1.10m two-phase with 2.42 seconds in hand and day two’s 1.15m speed, outpacing their 23 rivals by 5.67 seconds.
Image: Lottie-Elizabeth Photography - www.lottie-elizabethphotography.com
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